


Tales of the Unexpected

by Amorfati32



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Baby Fluff, F/M, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-27
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2019-02-22 17:19:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13171602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amorfati32/pseuds/Amorfati32
Summary: Mulder and Scully get some unexpected news





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on Tumblr prompts:  
> It’s six o clock in the morning, you’re not having vodka.  
> You’re getting a vasectomy. That’s final.  
> I’m late

“Mulder?”

“Hmm?” Mulder is in that blissful sleepy state, one he’s not prepared to leave just yet. He sinks further into his pillow, not willing to open his eyes. Unfortunately though Scully isn’t about to let him.

“Mulder…Mulder wake up!” She elbows him in the ribs, the sharp pain to his side instantly waking him, jolting him from his dreams.

“Ow dammit Scully, what was that for?” He’s wide awake now, sitting up in bed, letting the comforter pool at his waist. Scully sits before him on the mattress, and from the looks of it has been awake for some time. She’s still in her pjs, her complexion as pale as the bathrobe she wears, and from her expression he knows that something’s happened. “What is it Scully?” he asks, a feeling of dread pooling in the pit of his stomach. “Where’s William?” He’s pretty sure if something had happened to their son she’d be more animated, but he still needs to check.

“Sleeping.”

“At least someone is,” he murmurs dryly, instantly regretting it when Scully narrows her eyes and shoots him a scornful look. He tries again. “What’s the matter?”

“I’m late.”

Turning to the clock, Mulder rubs his eyes as he takes in the digital figures, half wondering whether he’s still dreaming. No, he realizes, as he takes in the time. He’s not dreaming. “It’s 5.45am Scully. Unless we’ve switched continents or had a time change and I’ve forgo…” He trails off as Scully’s words filter through to his brain, and sure enough her next sentence confirms it.

“Not that kind of late you idiot.”

Mulder forgets how to breathe as he turns to face his partner once again. “You’re…?”

“I’m pregnant.” Scully looks as scared as he feels right now, and he now realizes her pale complexion is nothing to do with the early hour but in fact the onset of morning sickness. It all makes sense now, the nausea, headaches and tiredness she’s been suffering from in recent weeks. They both presumed it was due to balancing work and home, a near on full-time job with a four-month-old baby. Little did they know.

His mind is reeling as he struggles to take in the news. “But…how is that possible?”

“Don’t you dare ask how babies are made Mulder,” she snaps, her patience wearing thin. “You know full well how this happened. It happened once before, and the result of that is sleeping in the nursery next door.” She looks as though she’s about to be sick, and Mulder isn’t sure if it’s due to her general feeling of nausea or the thought of another baby so soon. He suspects it may be the latter; he certainly feels that way. They both adore William and wouldn’t change him for the world, but they’re still trying to recall a time when they had a full night’s sleep – or even half a night. Hell, William was only weaned a few weeks ago, and the thought of having another baby in just a few months is overwhelming to say the least. Overwhelming and yet amazing. This wasn’t supposed to happen, Scully is supposed to be barren, and yet here she is, pregnant with their second child in as many years. He wants to celebrate, he wants to get up and shout from the window that he and Scully are having another baby against all odds. He wants to lock himself in the bathroom and cry for his lost sleep and the little to no life he and Scully will be leading over the next eighteen – make that nineteen now – years. He wants to –

“Mulder, where are you going?” Scully asks, as he pushes back the covers and gets out of bed, immediately heading towards the door.

“I think I need a drink.”

“It’s six o’clock in the morning, you’re not having vodka.”

She has a point, he thinks to himself, retreating back to the bed, this time sitting down next to Scully and drawing her into his arms. “How do you feel about this?” he asks, gently rubbing her back.

“I don’t know,” she admits, and for a second he’s glad he’s not the only one who feels this way. “I’m in shock.”

“How long have you suspected?”

“A few days. I purchased a test last night and intended to do it at a more reasonable time this morning, but I couldn’t wait.”

“Just one test?”

“Five.”

He smiles. Scully likes to be thorough in every aspect of her life.

“On the one hand I’m excited, and I know this baby is another miracle. I love having William around, and I know we spoke about giving him a brother or sister one day.” She huffs out a laugh against his chest. “I just didn’t think it would happen so soon.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Newborns are hard work at the best of times, let alone when you have a one-year-old running around. William will be walking or at the very least crawling and he’ll be into everything just like you are, and we’ll need eyes in the back of our heads just for him. Plus some sleep would be nice,” she continued. “And there’s the fact we’d need to look into childcare, because we’re exhausted enough just looking after one.”

Mulder nods in agreement, but he can’t help but think back to the night William was born, when he first held his son, when he inhaled his scent and counted his tiny fingers and toes. When his heart felt so full of love he thought he might burst. He thinks of his son now, how he’s growing and developing daily, how William’s face, which resembles his mom in so many ways, lights up whenever he sees his parents. “But it’s another baby,” he says firmly, realizing just how much he wants it again.

“Yeah.” From the wistful smile on Scully’s face, she feels the same too, not that there was ever any doubt.

“Another you.”

“Or you this time.”

“Hopefully not.” He smiles. “Maybe another little boy.” That would be nice, he thinks. Two brothers, close in age, a playmate for William.

“Or maybe a girl,” Scully counters, and Mulder nods. A little girl, as precocious as her mom, and just as beautiful. That would be nice too.

“Or twins,” he jokes, and receives another jab to the ribs. “I’m kidding.”

“Don’t even joke.”

“I guess we’re doing this then.”

She smiles up at him, nodding tearfully. “I guess we are.”

“Two babies.”

“It won’t be easy,” Scully says in warning.

“When have things ever been easy?” He leans in and kisses her. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They both pause as they hear rustling over the baby monitor, followed by a squeal from William. “I’ll get him,” Mulder volunteers, but Scully shakes her head. Instead she reaches over to the bedside table, retrieves the phone and hands it over to him. “What’s this?”

“Call the doctor and schedule an appointment,” she orders. ““You’re getting a vasectomy. That’s final.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on the Tumblr prompt: I feel like I can’t breathe

She finds him in the corridor five minutes after he left the room – she presumed he was already waiting in the car, or worse still was making his way home without her. He’s in shock after all; there’s no telling what he might do in the circumstances.

“Mulder?” He doesn’t even register her presence, his head buried in his hands, his shoulders shaking from shock, crying or laughter, Scully isn’t quite sure. “Mulder?”

Approaching him cautiously, Scully sinks to her knees in front of him and sets down her purse, tugging on arms and taking hold of his hands, wanting him to face her. “It’s okay,” she murmurs, the concern evident in her voice. She’s in shock too, her mind reeling from the events of the past twenty minutes, but she’s aware that right now she has to be the strong partner in their relationship. One of them has to stay strong. “You’re going to be okay.”

“I feel like I can’t breathe,” he says finally, looking her in the eye. She nods, understanding just how he feels.

“You can,” she replies encouragingly. “Deep breath in Mulder, and deep breath out. Deep breath in…” She takes a deep breath herself, wanting him to copy her. “And out…in…and out…” Eventually Mulder mimics her, his breathing coming under control. When she’s satisfied he’s out of the worst of it, Scully gets to her feet without letting go of his hands and takes a seat next to him. “I’m not going to ask how you’re feeling,” she begins, unsure exactly of what to say. “Because I think I know the answer to that.”

Mulder surprises her by laughing – giggling almost – catching her off guard. She’s not entirely sure it’s a laughing matter. He’s most definitely in shock. “You’re taking this very calmly Scully.”

“Right now I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. I just can’t believe it.”

“Me either.” He shakes his head, looking up to the ceiling as if in search of a higher power. He needs inspiration from somewhere right now, because all he can think of doing is panicking.

“I’m still in shock.” Scully squeezes his hands tightly, as though to reassure herself that this is really happening, that it’s not some kind of a dream.

“Twins.” Saying the word out loud doesn’t make him feel any better, in fact he feels sick. Their son is barely six months old, he’s still not sleeping through the night, and they’re about to add two more children into the mix.

“Mulder –”

“Three children under fourteen months.”

“Stop it.” It appears Scully is having as much trouble taking it all in as he is.

“William might not even be walking by the time they’re born.”

“Stop.”

“He won’t be potty trained.”

“Just shut up Mulder,” she snaps, and he does as she orders. He hears her sigh and turns his attention back to her. Scully looks as though she’s about to be sick, and Mulder isn’t sure whether it’s due to morning sickness or the results of their recent sonogram. “I just can’t believe this is happening. Twins don’t even run in our families.”

“No,” he replies, sighing heavily. “Well, except on my aunt’s side.”

“What?” She glares at him accusingly, and suddenly Mulder wonders whether they should have had this conversation before they got pregnant.

“My aunt had twins.”

“And you didn’t think to tell me?”

“The conversation never came up – ow!” he exclaimed, as Scully let go of his hand and punched his arm. Hard. “What was that for?”

“This is all your fault.”

“What?”

“Twins run in your family Mulder, and let’s not forget you making jokes about this when I told you I was pregnant.”

“I was joking Scully. That’s the point of jokes, you’re not being serious. Besides, you can’t just pin this on me. I don’t seem to recall you having any objections twelve weeks ago.”

“I know,” Scully sniffs, and Mulder watches in horror as she tears up. Now he feels like a complete asshole.

“Hey, hey I’m sorry.” He wraps an arm around her, pulling her into an embrace. “It’ll be okay,” he adds, repeating her earlier words as he wipes away her tears with his free hand.

“Will it?”

“We’ve gotten through worse. Twins can’t be worse than the Flukeman, can they?”

“Three lots of diapers.”

“Shit.”

“Three toddlers throwing tantrums.”

“Did I mention that I’m moving out? Just for a few years or so.”

Scully pulls back, her expression now one of alarm. “Mulder, if you can’t do this –”

“I was joking.”

“No.” She shakes her head, fresh tears threatening to fall. “I need you on side for this. I can’t do this on my own. ”

“You’re not going to.” He smiles, feeling some of the panic begin to fade as he tries to reassure her.

“I don’t even know how we’re going to cope with the two of us. I’ll have to quit my job, and we’ll have to see about a babysitter –”

“Hey, hey calm down. It’ll be okay. We’ll get through this, we always do.”

“But you said –”

“I’m all in Scully. I told you this when William was born, and I stand by that. So unless you’re about to murder me, which I think is getting likelier by the second, you’re stuck with me. All four of you are stuck with me.”

“There’d better be a girl in here somewhere,” she sniffs. “I can’t live with four Mulder men.”

“I’ll buy a shed. I’ll live out in the yard and you can live with the three better ones.”

“We don’t have a yard.”

“Not yet we don’t, but we’re going to have to get a bigger place. A much bigger place.” His mind is beginning to reel once again. They have so much to sort out before the baby – correction, babies – arrive. “We’ll think about that another day.” Glancing down, Mulder notices Scully’s open purse on the floor, with the sonogram picture sitting on top. He picks it up and opens it, smiling at the images before him. “I’m sorry I ran out.” The Sonographer had barely gotten the words out when Mulder had bolted from the room, needing to get his head around the news.

Scully gives him a small reassuring smile. She doesn’t hate him, though she has every reason to. God he loves this woman. “It’s okay. Just as long as you don’t do the same in the delivery room.”

“I didn’t miss anything else did I? Maybe a third hiding in the background? Why have twins when you can go for triplets?”

“Don’t even joke Mulder.”

“I know, I’m sorry. It’s a good job you’re stuck with me, eh?”

“If you could just start producing milk in the next few months, it would be worth keeping you around.”

“I’ll see what I can do.” He kisses her crown. “They’re both healthy?”

“Yeah.” He doesn’t have to look at her to know she’s smiling. “Growing well.”

“That’s good. And we can find out the sex next time?”

“Sexes.”

“Sexes.” This is going to take a lot of getting used to.

“I’m going to be the size of a house.”

“You’ll be beautiful.” His hand moves down to rest on her abdomen. “I love you.”

“I love you too, even if you have ruined my life.”

He laughs. “In the best possible way, right?”

Scully nods and places her hands over Mulder’s. They’re in shock, their lives are about to be turned upside down, but deep down they couldn’t be happier.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on the Tumblr prompts:  
> You work for me. You are my slave.   
> I’m not wearing a dress

Mulder is on his way to the bedroom, hurrying to fetch his keys before Scully yells at him. She’s been on a mission all morning and they’re about to be late to her mom’s for Christmas lunch, which doesn’t bode well for her mood. He stops short as he passes the nursery, sudden movement in the room catching his eye, and he peers in, both bemused and a little frustrated. 

Inside his two and a half, going on twenty two and a half year-old daughter is jumping around the room. She’s wearing one of Scully’s old green sweaters, which drowns her tiny form, and Mulder notices with some amusement that it’s back to front, the label showing beneath her chin. He spots a bright green tutu peeking out from beneath the sweater, and on her feet she’s got her matching colored rain boots with frog faces dotted all over them. When he left her barely ten minutes ago Scully was separating the little girl’s poker straight blonde hair into tiny pigtails and ordering her into a pink dress that Maggie gave them for Christmas. He doesn’t know what happened between then and now, but he knows his wife won’t appreciate the change of outfit. Before he interrupts, he retrieves his phone from his pocket and snaps a few pictures, captures a brief video and then finally speaks. “What’s going on here?”

Little Grace pauses in her movement, then twirls to face her dad, a big proud grin on her face. She’s a little Scully through and through – thankfully all three children are – and her big blue eyes peer up at him. Mulder bursts out laughing when he notices she’s wearing William’s swimming goggles. Apparently she’s taken it upon herself to choose her own outfit this morning, no doubt when Scully’s back was turned. “I’m a frog Daddy.”

He shakes his head, wondering where she inherits her crazy ideas from, and then realizes it’s most likely him. Grace, their youngest child by 23 minutes, has inherited her mom’s looks and her dad’s charm and charisma. He thinks she looks more like Emily as she ages, and suspects Scully does too – she sometimes gives the little girl an extra hug, as though she’s thinking of her eldest daughter.

“So I see.” He enters the room and goes over to her dresser, on which Scully has hung the intended dress. “C’mon cupcake, we’ve got to get you ready to go to Grandma’s.”

“I’m a frog,” she repeats, frowning at his suggestion. She’s clearly not keen on the change of outfit suggestion, not that Mulder can blame her. Neither he nor Scully is a fan of pink and have tried to dress their daughter in more gender neutral colors since she was born, however it turns out their daughter is fast becoming a girl’s girl, favoring all things pink and sparkly, to the delight of Maggie, who’s been waiting for a granddaughter for years.

“I know you are, but this little frog has got to get changed. We’re going to Grandma’s, and Mommy wants you to wear the dress that Santa brought you this morning.” Santa being Maggie of course.

“I’m not wearing a dress.”

She’s most definitely developing the attitude of a teenager already. Thankfully her brothers are more obedient, though both William and Benjamin too know how to test their parents’ boundaries. Despite reservations of how they’d cope with three children in such a short space of time, Mulder and Scully have somehow managed to get through the early years intact, though it hasn’t been easy. They’ve simply become used to surviving on little sleep, lots of coffee, their house forever swamped with toys and their lives being organised chaos. Not that they’d have it any other way.

“But it’s a pretty dress,” he counters, holding it up as evidence. God, it’s an awful dress, pale pink with a huge matching bow on the front, and sparkles adoring the hem. “Your Grandma would like to see you in it.”

Grace shakes her head adamantly, the conversation now closed, and begins jumping around the room once again.

“Grace, please.” Sighing, Mulder hangs the dress up once again, then drops down to his knees so he is his daughter’s height. He doesn’t want her to think he’s begging but…well…he’s begging. Christmas was always going to be stressful in a family with three small children, but Mulder is particularly nervous as they’ll be spending the rest of the day with Scully’s brothers. He doesn’t know Charlie too well, but every time they’ve met they’ve got along, but Bill is another story. If he’s honest he’s scared of Scully’s brother, he has been ever since Bill called him a sorry son of a bitch when Scully was lying in a hospital bed battling with cancer. The last thing he wants is for there to be an awkward encounter, particularly as Maggie has been looking forward to today for months. He knows he has to make an effort, that it means a lot to Scully for them to get along, and he just hopes Bill does too. “Okay listen, we have to leave for Grandma’s in two minutes, and Mommy really wants you to wear that dress.”

“No.”

“Let me level up here with you. Uncle Bill is coming today –”

Grace throws her arms up in the air in triumph. “Yay!”

“No, no “yay.” It should be “boo, Uncle Bill,” not “yay.” I’m the good guy, remember that. Daddy is the good guy, Uncle Bill is the bad guy.” Grace blinks up at him suspiciously. “Uncle Bill will not be happy with you wearing that, and I’ll get the blame. Today we all need to be on our best behavior and pretend to be a normal, definitely not crazy family. If you wear your frog outfit well…I don’t know how that would go down.”

“No.”

“How about you wear the pink dress and the frog boots?” He tries compromising, hoping that by the time they reach Maggie he’ll be able to talk his daughter into wearing regular shoes.

“No.”

“Mulder, what are you doing?”

He turns to see Scully standing in the doorway, a sleepy-looking Benjamin in her arms. The little boy had passed out not long after presents had been opened, and from the looks of him now he’s been woken up by his mom. He doesn’t look too sure as to whether he’s happy about that.

“Scully –” Mulder gets to his feet.

“What is she wearing? I told you to put her in the dress.”

“Yeah well it looks like Grace took it upon herself to dress herself today. I tried to get her to change but she’s adamant so I suggested she wears the dress but keeps the boots on.”

“Mulder, never negotiate with a two-year-old.” She transfers Benjamin to his dad’s arms, sweeps into the room and scoops Grace up into her arms without breaking stride, before her daughter can complain. “You tell her to do something, not ask her.”

“I’m a frog Mommy!” Grace squeals, as Scully lays her down on the bed and swiftly begins removing the little girl’s clothes.

“Not right now you’re not,” Scully replies, firmly but fairly. “You work for me. You are my slave, and you do as I say,” she adds in a robotic voice, tickling her daughter for good measure. “I say you wear your pretty dress for just a few hours so Grandma can see, then tonight we’ll come home, take it off, burn it and you’ll never have to wear it again.” She gestures for Mulder to bring her the dress, then blows a raspberry on her daughter’s bare stomach, smiling as Grace begins to giggle. Ben looks on, unamused, snuggling up to his dad and resting his head in the crook of Mulder’s neck. Scully notices, her Mommy Radar sharpening as each day passes. “Don’t let him fall back to sleep Mulder. I think he’s coming down with a cold, but if he sleeps now he’ll just be in a grump this afternoon and then he won’t go down tonight.”

The last thing Mulder wants is a cranky son and daughter, so he jiggles Benjamin in his arms, trying to keep the little boy both awake and amused. “It’s okay buddy,” he murmurs as his son sniffs. “I feel the same when it comes to Uncle Bill.”

“Mulder!”

“Sorry, I –”

“Beep Beep!” Mulder and Scully turn to see William race past them on his brand new scooter. While Grace is distracted by her older brother, Scully slips the pink dress onto her daughter, then sits the little girl on her lap. “William, did you carry that scooter upstairs by yourself?” She glares at Mulder. “Didn’t you close the baby gate?”

“I’m sure I did.” Actually now that he thinks about it, he’s not so sure. He was in such a rush to collect his keys and Grace, but Scully doesn’t need to know that.

William ignores his mom, and his parents listen out as they hear him turn his scooter around and race back along the hallway.

“William get your coat please, we need to go.”

“I’m taking my scooter.”

“Your scooter won’t fit in the car.” She’s not wrong either, their vehicle is already packed full of baby seats, changing bags and toys to keep their kids amused for the afternoon, along with gifts for the family.

“Ohhhhhh!” He looks about ten seconds away from a full-on meltdown and it’s not even lunchtime. Just your average day in the Mulder household, Mulder thinks to himself; not surprising with three young kids. He’s embracing the chaos now.

“But I hear that Santa made a delivery for you guys at Grandma’s house.”

“How did he know we were at Grandma’s?”

He’s Scully’s son through and through, questioning everything. Thankfully Mulder is adept at bullshitting. “Santa knows everything,” he says. “And he’ll know if you keep riding your scooter in the house.”

William reluctantly steps off his scooter, throwing it on the floor while his parents cringe, mourning the loss of their wallpaper out in the hallway.

“And he’ll know if you don’t go get your coat now please.”

Suddenly paying attention to his parents, William runs off to his room. Sighing, Mulder takes a seat next to his wife. “Do we really have to go to your mom’s?”

“You just don’t want to spend the afternoon with Bill.”

“He hates me.”

“He likes you.”

“He thinks I’ve led you astray.”

“You have led me astray,” she says with a laugh. “Mulder, I think after a marriage and three kids, Bill is starting to realize you’re part of the family now.” It’s true, and Bill had even been civil to Mulder on their wedding day. Of course it helped that the twins were barely a year old, and that Mulder used them as armor whenever Scully’s brother came near. Bill couldn’t be mad when faced with his adorable niece and nephew.

“I know, but he scares me.”

“You do this for me, and Santa may have an additional gift for you later tonight.”

Now he’s interested. “Oh really? Does it involve you wearing very few clothes?”

She smiles. “It might do. If you behave yourself this afternoon.” Grace wriggles out of Scully’s arms and gets back down onto the floor. She reaches out for her frog boots, cradling them in her arms. “My boots.”

“Okay,” Scully relents. “You can take your boots to Grandma’s, but keep your pretty dress on.”

“It’s hideous, isn’t it?” Mulder asks, and Scully nods in the affirmative.

“It is, but it’s just for a few hours.” She bumps Mulder’s shoulder, then double checks that Benjamin is still awake. “Thank you for doing this for me.”

“Doing what?”

“Spending Christmas with my family. I know you hate this time of year.”

“Hated,” he says, correcting her. “It was never an easy time for me, but you guys have changed that.”

Scully smiles, then leans in to kiss him. “You mean you actually prefer a day of tears and tantrums and a tornado of discarded wrapping paper and spending hundreds of dollars on gifts only to find that the cardboard boxes are more popular than the presents themselves?”

He grins. “The perfect Christmas.” He means it too.

“Well hold that thought, just a few hours playing nice with my brothers, then we can return to our perfect Christmas.”

“I can’t wait.” He kisses her back, sighing contentedly into the embrace. “Love you.”

Before Scully can respond, Benjamin sneezes in Mulder’s arms. He sighs wearily. “I didn’t need a vasectomy Scully, kids are a good enough contraceptive on their own.”

“C’mon,” she replies, tapping his knee. “With any luck the kids will tire themselves out and we can have a perfect Christmas night of our own.” With that they rise from the bed. Scully grabs Grace before her daughter can make a quick getaway, and together they head down to the car, ready to spend Christmas together as a family.


End file.
